The Policy Division of Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute (FPG) uses the Institute’s research, implementation, and technical assistance capacities to inform and support policymakers. It is imperative that we promote effective service systems to achieve optimal child development, family, and community outcomes through research-informed policies. Our policy division is committed to closing the research to practice gap, achieving broader population benefits, and equipping policymakers with research-supported evidence. FPG has a strong history of achieving results through contributing to the development of policies, programs, and initiatives for young children at federal, state, and local levels.
Key Activities
Key activities for the Policy Division include:
- Enhancing FPG’s participation in various policy environments by leveraging our extensive subject matter expertise and experience. Examples include:
- Assisting in literature reviews with collaborating partners to inform policy
- Developing and delivering various educational presentations involving the full spectrum of child and adolescent development issues for policymakers’ consideration and use
- Participating in task forces, work groups, ad hoc committees, and other policy-focused efforts to bring scientific expertise into the policymaking realm
- Exploring databases to assist in answering relevant research questions or to directly link policy strategies and goals to specific data for evidence-based translation
- Building effective relationships with policymakers that enable rapid responses for various requests involving policy development
- Engaging in new policy research and translation, dissemination, and implementation activities to further advance evidence-based policymaking
- Collaborating with public and private partners to leverage the capacities and resources necessary for evidence-informed policy decision-making at multiple levels
Featured People
Diana 'Denni' Fishbein, PhD
Director of Translational Neuro-Prevention Research
Dr. Fishbein’s studies use transdisciplinary methods and a developmental approach to understanding interactions between neurobiological processes and environmental factors. Her research supports the premise that underlying neurobiological mechanisms interact with the quality of our psychosocial experiences and environmental contexts to alter trajectories either toward or away from risk behaviors.
Recent Work
North Carolina Statewide Birth-5 Needs Assessment Final Report
As part of North Carolina’s Preschool Development Grant, a team of FPG early childhood researchers worked together to produce a comprehensive Birth to 5 Needs Assessment report designed to significantly inform strategic planning and capacity building relative to what North Carolina is currently doing to meet its children’s early childhood care and education needs.
Read the North Carolina Statewide Birth-5 Needs Assessment Final Report here.
Blueprint for a U.S. Firearms Data Infrastructure
Robin Jenkins, policy division lead and associate director of the Impact Center at FPG, participated on an expert panel, convened by NORC at the University of Chicago, to study the problem of firearm data infrastructure and how to improve it. The panel crafted policy recommendations at the federal, state, and local levels to significantly improve the firearm data infrastructure across the country.
Policy Leadership
Sandra Soliday Hong, PhD, lead of the Policy Division at the UNC Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, is an expert in applied measurement of contextual and individual factors in early care and education (ECE) settings that relate to the outcomes of young children, particularly for children from diverse backgrounds. She started her career as a preschool teacher before working in applied ECE research, practice, and policy. Learn more about Hong and her work in this news story.
